''Son of Fury: The Story of Benjamin Blake'' is a 1942 American

south seas Today the term South Seas, or South Sea, is used in several contexts. Most commonly it refers to the portion of the Pacific Ocean south of the equator. In 1513, when Spanish conquistador Vasco Núñez de Balboa coined the term ''Mar del Sur'', ...

adventure film directed by John Cromwell and starring

Tyrone Power Tyrone Edmund Power III (May 5, 1914 – November 15, 1958) was an American actor. From the 1930s to the 1950s, Power appeared in dozens of films, often in swashbuckler roles or romantic leads. His better-known films include ''Jesse James'', ' ...

. The film was adapted from Edison Marshall's 1941 historical novel ''Benjamin Blake''. It is notable as the last film Frances Farmer appeared in before her legal problems and eventual commitment to psychiatric hospitals until 1950.

Plot

The story is set during the reign of

King George III George III (George William Frederick; 4 June 173829 January 1820) was King of Great Britain and of Ireland from 25 October 1760 until the union of the two kingdoms on 1 January 1801, after which he was King of the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

, in

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, where young Benjamin Blake (

Roddy McDowall Roderick Andrew Anthony Jude McDowall (17 September 1928 – 4 October 1998) was a British actor, photographer and film director. He began his acting career as a child in England, and then in the United States, in ''How Green Was My Valley'' (1 ...

), son of the deceased

Baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14t ...

of Breetholm is taken from his commoner grandfather, gunsmith Amos Kidder (

Harry Davenport Harry Davenport may refer to: * Harry Davenport (actor) (1866–1949), American film and stage actor * Harry Davenport (footballer) (1900–1984), Australian footballer * Harry J. Davenport (1902–1977), Democratic Party member of the U.S. House ...

), and forced to serve his vengeful uncle, Sir Arthur Blake (

George Sanders George Henry Sanders (3 July 1906 – 25 April 1972) was a British actor and singer whose career spanned over 40 years. His heavy, upper-class English accent and smooth, bass voice often led him to be cast as sophisticated but villainous chara ...

). Arthur inherited the title and land from his brother Godfrey, and fears that Ben may not have been born out of wedlock and might claim his inheritance. He compels the boy to become his ward and bonded servant, giving Arthur life-and-death power over the lad. Ben runs away to his grandfather, but rather than force the old man to live a life on the run, returns to Breetholm, vowing to endure whatever he must in order to one day prove himself a "true Blake" and recover his birthright. Ben, now a young man (

), has fallen in love with Isabel ( Frances Farmer), his cousin and Arthur's haughty and scheming daughter. Arthur discovers the relationship and thrashes Benjamin with his fists, then beats him unconscious and flogs him mercilessly when he retaliates. Ben confronts Arthur that night, but is threatened with jail for breaking into his room to assault him, a hanging offense. Ben flees arrest but his grandfather is imprisoned for helping Ben escape. Ben stows away on a ship bound for the South Seas, where he can make his fortune, prove his claim, and release his grandfather from prison. Ben is forced to join the ship's crew, but joins shipmate Caleb Green (

John Carradine John Carradine ( ; born Richmond Reed Carradine; February 5, 1906 – November 27, 1988) was an American actor, considered one of the greatest character actors in American cinema. He was a member of Cecil B. DeMille's stock company and later ...

) in jumping ship at a Polynesian island. There he wins the trust of the native islanders, finds fortune (

pearl A pearl is a hard, glistening object produced within the soft tissue (specifically the mantle) of a living shelled mollusk or another animal, such as fossil conulariids. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is composed of calcium carb ...

s), and takes a new love, a native girl he calls "

Eve Eve (; ; ar, حَوَّاء, Ḥawwāʾ; el, Εὕα, Heúa; la, Eva, Heva; Syriac: romanized: ) is a figure in the Book of Genesis in the Hebrew Bible. According to the origin story, "Creation myths are symbolic stories describing how the ...

" ( Gene Tierney). When a

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

ship happens by, allowing them to fulfill their ambitions, Caleb discovers that the idyllic life in the islands is worth more than the pearls they have amassed, but Ben remains true to his vow and his imprisoned grandfather. With their combined treasure, he returns to England under an assumed name to prove his birthright with the help of noted "man of influence," Bartholomew Pratt (

Dudley Digges Sir Dudley Digges (19 May 1583 – 18 March 1639) was an English diplomat and politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1610 and 1629. Digges was also a "Virginia adventurer," an investor who ventured his capital in the Virginia ...

). Ben is betrayed after he goes to Breetholm to see Isabel, and is convicted by jury for the earlier offenses. Just as his death sentence is about to be pronounced, he is saved by Pratt, who proves that no crime was committed by showing that Ben's father and mother were married aboard a ship to India, and that "''Sir'' Benjamin Blake" was in law the rightful baronet at the time. Ben discovers that it was Isabel who betrayed him and also repays the beating he received from Arthur. He emancipates the bonded tenants of Breetholm and divides the estate among them, deeding the manor house to his grandfather. Ben then returns to the Polynesian island to live out his life with Eve.

Cast

as Benjamin Blake * Gene Tierney as Eve *

as Sir Arthur Blake * Frances Farmer as Isabel *

as Benjamin as a Boy *

as Caleb Green *

Elsa Lanchester Elsa Sullivan Lanchester (28 October 1902 – 26 December 1986) was a British-American actress with a long career in theatre, film and television.Obituary '' Variety'', 31 December 1986. Lanchester studied dance as a child and after the F ...

as Bristol Isabel *

as Amos Kidder * Kay Johnson as Helena Blake *

as Pratt *

Halliwell Hobbes Herbert Halliwell Hobbes (16 November 187720 February 1962) was an English actor. Early years The future actor was the son of William Albert Hobbes (1841-1909), a Warwickshire solicitor, and his wife, Marion Hobbes, née Dennis, (1838-1925). ...

as Purdy * Martin Lamont as Kenneth Hobart *

Arthur Hohl Arthur Hohl (May 21, 1889 – March 10, 1964) was an American stage and motion-picture character actor. He was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and began appearing in films in the early 1920s. He played a great number of villainous or mildly la ...

as Capt. Greenough * Pedro de Cordoba as Freenou * Heather Thatcher as Maggie Martin *

Lester Matthews Arthur Lester Matthews (6 June 1900 – 5 June 1975) was an English actor. In his career, the handsome Englishman made more than 180 appearances in film and on television. He was erroneously credited in later years as Les Matthews. Matthews pla ...

as Prosecutor * Charles Irwin as Captain *

Dennis Hoey Dennis Hoey (born Samuel David Hyams, 30 March 1893 – 25 July 1960) was a British film and stage actor, best known for playing Inspector Lestrade in six films of Universal's Sherlock Holmes series. Early life Hoey was born Samuel David ...

as Lord Tarrant *

Robert Greig Robert Greig (December 27, 1879 – June 27, 1958) was an Australian-American actor who appeared in more than 100 films between 1930 and 1949, usually as the dutiful butler. Born Arthur Alfred Bede Greig, he was the nephew of Australian pol ...

as Judge * Mala as Marnoa (as Ray Mala) * Cliff Severn as Paddy

Production

The film was based on the novel ''Benjamin Blake'' which was published in March 1941. Film rights were purchased by 20th Century Fox prior to the novel's publication, in January 1941. They paid a reported $50,000.

William Perlberg William Perlberg (October 22, 1900 in Łódź, Poland – October 31, 1968 in Los Angeles, California) was an American film producer. William Perlberg was born Wolf Perelberg, son of Israel Jakob Perelberg (later: Perlberg), a fur manufacturer ...

was assigned to produce. In March 1941 Fox announced Tyrone Power would star. The same month the novel came out and became a best seller. In July,

Ida Lupino Ida Lupino (4 February 1918Recorded in ''Births Mar 1918'' Camberwell Vol. 1d, p. 1019 (Free BMD). Transcribed as "Lupine" in the official births index – 3 August 1995) was an English-American actress, singer, director, writer, and producer. T ...

was announced as co star and the film was officially listed as being on the Fox schedule for the next year. In late July Fox said Maureen O'Hara was replacing Lupino and John Cromwell was directing. Gene Tierney's character was meant to die in the original script but Daryl F. Zanuck decided to change the ending to be happier. In August Fox changed the title of the film to ''Son of Fury''. Other key roles went to Virginia Gilmore, Gene Tierney and

. O'Hara withdrew from the film due to illness and was replaced by Cobina Wright Jr. Then Wright fell ill. In October she was replaced by Frances Farmer. Filming finished by November 1941.'Consent Decree' Films Evidence Improvement: Hope Manning Signed Frances Farmer Lead Set Taylor May Do 'Cargo' Twins Sought for Serial 'Storm' Interests Brown Schallert, Edwin. Los Angeles Times 15 Nov 1941: A9.

Home media

The film was released on

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for Digital Video Disc or Digital Versatile Disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any kind ...

by Fox on May 1, 2007 in The Tyrone Power Collection

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Son Of Fury The Story Of Benjamin Blake 1942 films 1942 adventure films 20th Century Fox films American adventure films American black-and-white films American romantic drama films 1940s English-language films Films scored by Alfred Newman Films based on American novels Films directed by John Cromwell Films produced by Darryl F. Zanuck Films set in England Films set on islands Films set in Oceania Films set in the 1810s Films with screenplays by Philip Dunne 1940s American films